The invention relates generally to information storage devices. More specifically, the invention is a tablet apparatus for storing and accessing information (the “apparatus” or “tablet”).
The ability to accurately record information and to later access that recorded information can be very beneficial to users in a wide variety of different operational contexts. Unfortunately, many approaches for storing and retrieving information such as a using a writing instrument such as a pen or pencil to write on a conventional note pad or even an adhesive-backed note pad, are designed for a traditional office environment. Such approaches involve significant limitations outside the traditional office environment.
A scuba diver cannot simply pull out a paper notepad and pencil to make some notes while 10 feet underwater. A skilled tradesman working on the construction of a sky scrapper cannot simply jot down measurements on an adhesive-backed note pad and attach it to the side of a tool, tape measure or wall of the building when the work space is exposed to the elements of wind and weather. Even the machinist on the plant floor can benefit from the use of instrumentation for the recording and retrieval of information that does not presume traditional office conditions.
In many contexts, the person desiring to store information is already doing something with their hands. The ability to either temporarily or permanently attach the information storage device to something else can make the difference between an information storage device that is useful in practice and an information storage device that is essentially impractical to use in a particular context.
Outside a general office environment, the limitations of space can be significant because a person only has so many pockets and so many hands. Information storage devices are of little use if they cannot be conveniently accessed when the information is to be stored or accessed. Despite the limitations of space, space is nonetheless often underutilized. There are many items, whether fully portable, somewhat moveable, or fully fixed with unused surface areas. The reasons underlying the failure to more fully utilize unused surface area are largely grounded in history as well as the predominant focus on conventional office environments to the exclusion of the challenges faced in particular niche environments.
A conventional office environment does not involve wind, rain, or other types of weather. Outside a conventional office environment, there are many instances where an information storage device will be subjected to such conditions. Thumbtacks are suitable for sticking a note to a board, but are not well suited to attach a piece of paper to a tape measure. Even relatively recent technologies such as adhesive-backed note pads do not hold up well when subjected to the elements.
Conventional tools for recording and storing information are resistant to change in part because the traditional office environment is the largest market for such technologies. Operating environments such as under water or even construction and manufacturing settings are perceived as constituting market niches that may be perceived as too small to merit or support specialized alternatives to general office technologies. Moreover, environment-specific obstacles in using general purpose tools are significantly underestimated by those individuals who do not personally experience such obstacles. For example, the need to carry separate devices for capturing measurements and then recording those measurements may not be perceived as sufficiently burdensome to merit product innovation. Thus the absence of integrated tools is not fully appreciated by many of ordinary skill in the art.